M/C EcoGalaxy

Your adventure begins at San Cristobal’s modest yet bustling airport, where a seasoned naturalist guide will greet you.

Lobos Island, a small islet near San Cristóbal, offers an unforgettable wildlife experience. Upon landing, groups of sea lions will greet you as they play in tidal pools. Walking inland, you’ll spot frigatebirds perched in bushes, displaying their inflated red pouches, while blue-footed boobies nest along the trail, performing their iconic courtship dance. In the calm waters, snorkeling provides an incredible opportunity to swim with playful sea lions, while sea turtles and rays rest on the sandy bottom.

Santa Fe Island, nestled in one of the most stunning bays in the Galapagos, boasts towering prickly-pear cacti and ancient lava formations. Its white-sand beach and turquoise waters are home to a large sea lion colony basking under the sun. As you follow the trail, look for the endemic Santa Fe land iguana. After the hike, snorkel in the bay’s sheltered waters. Swim alongside playful sea lions, reef sharks, and sea turtles.

Despite its small size, South Plazas is teeming with wildlife. A large sea lion colony dominates the shore, where playful pups explore tide pools while massive bulls defend their territory. The trail leads to a dramatic cliffside, offering breathtaking ocean views where frigatebirds, blue-footed boobies, red-billed tropicbirds, and swallow-tailed gulls soar. A blanket of reddish succulents covering the island adds to its striking beauty.

Seymour island is home for large colonies of both magnificent and great frigatebirds and you can see them displaying their red balloons to attract a female. Blue-footed boobies nest in the ground and perform their famous dance in the open areas, while swallow-tailed gulls perch on the cliff edges. Land iguanas are common inland while their marine cousins bask in the rocks by the sea, close to sea lions, which often like to body surf in the waves. This place is a really great snorkeling location, as it has tremendous diversity and amount of fish, but also sea lions, sharks, eels, turtles, rays and many more.

Mosquera is mostly a barren sand bar with some rocky areas and scattered salt-resistant plants. You can walk along the beach and enjoy seeing playful sea lion pups surfing the waves and having a great time in the tide pools.

Mosquera is mostly a barren sand bar with some rocky areas and scattered salt-resistant plants. You can walk along the beach and enjoy seeing playful sea lion pups surfing the waves and having a great time in the tide pools. The trail is an ultimate wildlife experience as there are animals everywhere; sea lions and marine iguanas near the sea; night herons, lava and swallow tailed gulls, Darwin finches, Galapagos doves, mockingbirds and many more species inland. The bay offers several places to snorkel; from deep waters along the cliffs across the bay, to shallow waters by the beach.

El Barranco is located in the southern part of Darwin Bay at Genovesa Island. The cliffs facing the sea are made of very fragile fractured lava, making it the ideal place for storm petrels to build their colonies, which attracts an important population of short-eared owls preying on the nesting birds.

A bus will take you to the highlands stopping along the way at one of the reserves to visit the lush highland forests where you will look for Galapagos Giant tortoises in their natural environment. This is the best place in the Galapagos to see these gentle giants casually grazing and resting in freshwater ponds. This is also home for a great diversity of birds rarely found at the lowlands, including finches, flycatchers and several species of water birds. You will visit a lava tunnel and learn how these extraordinary formations were created by ancient volcanic eruptions.

Your Galapagos adventure comes to an end. This afternoon, you will be transferred to Baltra Airport, where your National Park naturalist guide will assist you with final details before your flight back to mainland Ecuador.

Upon arrival at Baltra Airport, your naturalist guide will greet you and assist with the transfer to Itabaca Channel. This initial journey offers your first connection with the archipelago as you take a short ferry ride to Santa Cruz Island.

The Charles Darwin Station is a nonprofit organization which has been working for decades together with the Galapagos National Park to preserve the biodiversity of these unique islands. During this visit you will learn about the projects that both institutions carry together to protect the native species and eradicate the invasive ones which are threatening the Galapagos environment. It is also a fantastic place to find several endemic Darwin finches, as well as flycatchers and mockingbirds.

Moreno Point is a magical place with extensive lava fields which look lifeless at first sight. Once inland, scattered brackish lagoons form an oasis of life where you can find flamingos, gallinules, ducks and herons. Along the shore we will look for penguins, marine iguanas, flightless cormorants, blue-footed boobies, sea lions, oystercatchers and other shore birds. Also opportunity to snorkel with the chance of seeing sea turtles, cormorants and many species of fish.

Elizabeth Bay is a beautiful sheltered bay surrounded by large mangroves and barren lava fields. There is no trail here so you will take a dinghy tour to explore many channels, pools and coves teeming with life.

This place is known for the dramatic uplifting that happened here during the 1950’s. A large portion of the coast was pushed up, exposing many hectares of previously submerged land. The trail will give the opportunity to see land iguanas and, during certain seasons, giant tortoises. Galapagos hawks nest in the area and are often seen flying or perched on the trees. You can also snorkel from the beach to see sea turtles, cormorants and penguins. Fish are also abundant in the area.

Tagus Cove is steeped in history, once visited by Charles Darwin during his Galapagos exploration. At the top of the trail, breathtaking views of Lake Darwin and Isabela’s towering volcanoes await. A boat tour along the shore provides a chance to observe Galapagos penguins, flightless cormorants, marine iguanas, and the elusive Galapagos martin, one of the rarest and most endangered birds in the  archipelago.

Located at the base of an imposing volcano is Punta Espinosa, one of the jewels of the Galapagos National Park. Along the shore you will see flightless cormorants, which are restricted to the western areas of the archipelago. The nutrient-rich waters around Punta Espinosa attracts great numbers and diversity of fish and sea turtles. Seaweeds are also abundant, making this place the best for seeing marine iguanas feeding underwater. This makes this location perfect for snorkelling.

Vicente Roca Point offers a breathtaking natural spectacle, featuring some of the tallest cliffs in Galapagos and intriguing volcanic formations. While there are no trails, a dinghy tour along the shore provides an up-close look at the area’s rich wildlife. Snorkel in the cove to look for sea turtles, penguins, sea lions, cormorants, rays and many different species of fish.

Puerto Egas is a fascinating destination where history and wildlife intertwine. While there is no actual port, remnants of 1960s colonization attempts still stand. The coastal trail is teeming with marine iguanas basking in the sun and sea lions resting on the rocks. Towards the end of the trail, the grottos are home to a small colony of the elusive Galapagos fur seal. A snorkeling session from the beach will lead you to an area of rocky bottoms, excellent for observing fish, turtles, and reef sharks.

Rabida is a small island famous for its reddish lava rocks (rich in iron) which gives it a unique look. The beach is also red and hosts a small colony of sea lions. There is a small salt water lagoon where we will see ducks and stilts and sometimes flamingoes. The trail will take you inland to get beautiful views of the beach and the lagoon. Look for Darwin finches, flycatchers and mockingbirds.

lack Turtle Cove gets its name from the abundance of green sea turtles, locally known as: “tortugas negras”. There is no landing here so you will be doing a boat tour on the dinghies, exploring shallow channels and small coves surrounded by beautiful mangrove forests.

Your Galapagos adventure comes to an end. This afternoon, you will be transferred to Baltra Airport, where your National Park naturalist guide will assist you with final details before your flight back to mainland Ecuador.

Upon arrival at Baltra Airport, your naturalist guide will greet you and assist with the transfer to Itabaca Channel. This initial journey offers your first connection with the archipelago as you take a short ferry ride to Santa Cruz Island.

After, we will go to the beach known as Bachas, located north of Santa Cruz Island. Here we can snorkel or take a relaxing walk on the beach. For this, we will make a wet landing, in which we will jump from the panga to the shore of the beach.

The hike at Sullivan Bay is a journey into understanding the birth of these volcanic islands. You will walk in a very well preserved flow of Pahoehoe lava, which will give you endless opportunities to see the delicate textures of these types of lavas which only appear in a few places throughout the world. At first sight the barren landscape looks completely deprived of life, but look carefully for pioneer plants, lava lizards and small birds. By the shore, you can find penguins, pelicans and oystercatchers. You will have the option to swim or snorkel from a coral sand beach or from the dinghies.

Bartolome is one of the most iconic islands in Galapagos, renowned for its dramatic volcanic landscape and the famous Pinnacle Rock. The hike to the summit offers breathtaking views of a lunar-like terrain dotted with volcanic cones, with stunning panoramas of Sullivan Bay and Pinnacle Rock. Enjoy an unforgettable snorkeling experience in Bartolome, one of Galapagos’ top spots. Swim in calm, clear waters alongside penguins, colorful fish, sea turtles, sea lions, rays, and reef sharks in a thriving marine ecosystem.

A bus will take you to the highlands stopping along the way at one of the reserves to visit the lush highland forests where you will look for Galapagos Giant tortoises in their natural environment. This is the best place in the Galapagos to see these gentle giants casually grazing and resting in freshwater ponds. This is also home for a great diversity of birds rarely found at the lowlands, including finches, flycatchers and several species of water birds. You will visit a lava tunnel and learn how these extraordinary formations were created by ancient volcanic eruptions.

The Charles Darwin Station is a nonprofit organization which has been working for decades together with the Galapagos National Park to preserve the biodiversity of these unique islands. During this visit you will learn about the projects that both institutions carry together to protect the native species and eradicate the invasive ones which are threatening the Galapagos environment. It is also a fantastic place to find several endemic Darwin finches, as well as flycatchers and mockingbirds.

The Charles Darwin Station is a nonprofit organization which has been working for decades together with the Galapagos National Park to preserve the biodiversity of these unique islands. During this visit you will learn about the projects that both institutions carry together to protect the native species and eradicate the invasive ones which are threatening the Galapagos environment. It is also a fantastic place to find several endemic Darwin finches, as well as flycatchers and mockingbirds. Snorkelling adventure at Devil’s Crown, a heavily eroded little volcano right by Floreana island.

Post office bay was often used by whalers to anchor their ships and go up to the highlands to get freshwater and tortoises. Most boats visiting the Galapagos had to came to this place sooner or later, so a system of mail was established more than 200 years ago: a barrel near the beach became the way to leave messages to other ships and also to the outside world. This mail system is still in use and will allow you to send postcards from the Galapagos to the outside world.

The rocky trail at Suarez Point is one the most amazing nature walks you can do in the Galapagos islands. From the moment you set foot on the island and all the way along the trail the amount and diversity of fauna is truly amazing. At the end of the trail we will visit a colony of waved albatross (April to January), the largest bird in the islands and one of the most interesting because of its powerful flight and elaborate courtship.

Gardner beach is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful and interesting beaches to visit in the Galapagos. Its fine coral sand and turquoise water give it a totally tropical appearance, which contrasts with the presence of sea lions basking in the beach. You will have the opportunity to walk along the beach and learn about the biology of sea lions and other endemic species, such as the Española mockingbird, marine iguanas and Galapagos hawks.

Located in the outskirts of Puerto Baquerizo, the Galapagos Islands Interpretation center is dedicated to the history of human presence in the Galapagos. Since the times of the early Spanish explorers to the present times, including illustrious visitors such as Charles Darwin, this permanent exhibition will take you through the dangers and struggles of the first settlers trying to survive the harsh Galapagos environment.

Your Galapagos adventure comes to an end. This afternoon, you will be transferred to the airport at San Cristobal, where your National Park naturalist guide will assist you with final details before your flight back to mainland Ecuador.